Vital Nutrition Blogs

Flourless Chocolate Date Cake with Raspberry Coulis

It is tradition in my house that on your birthday, you get to pick what you would like for your birthday dinner. My only request this year was no cake. Crazy right? Well, maybe not so crazy for someone who is gluten-free! Ever since going gluten-free I’ve cheated and had regular, gluten-filled cake on my birthday but this year I wanted to change that.

I wasn’t sure what to expect for dessert but my Mom surprised me with this AMAZING gluten-free cake!

We’ve never made a gluten-free cake before so I knew it was a new recipe and tried to guess the ingredients, but I just could’t put my finger on it. I was shocked to find out that it was made from dates! Because they are a dried fruit, dates are very sweet – so sweet that there is actually no sugar at all in this recipe! The almond flour and dates made the cake very filling, so only small pieces were needed, which was okay because it made it last longer 😉

Flourless Chocolate Date Cake with Raspberry Coulis

1 cup (250mL) pitted dates

1/2 cup (125mL) natural cocoa powder

1/2 cup (125mL) brewed coffee, hot

1 & 1/2 cups (350mL) almond flour

1 tsp. (5mL) cinnamon

1/2 tsp. (2mL) baking soda

1/4 tsp. (1mL) salt

2 large eggs, separated

1/3 cup (80mL) melted coconut oil

2 tsp. (10mL) vanilla extract or chocolate extract

1 cup (250mL) fresh or frozen (thawed) raspberries

2 tsp. (10mL) honey

2 tsp. (10mL) lemon juice

Soak pitted dates in one cup of boiling water for 15 minutes. Blend dates and soaking water in a blender until smooth. Place cocoa powder and hot coffee in a large heatproof bowl, stir to combine, and set aside to cool. Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Line bottom of 9″ (23cm) springform pan or round cake pan with parchment paper and lightly grease the sides.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together almond flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the date paste, egg yolks, oil and extract into the cocoa-coffee mixture. Add cocoa mixture to almond flour mixture and stir gently until combined.

Using an electric mixer or whisk, whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Stir about 1/4 of the egg whites into the batter and then gently fold in the remaining egg whites.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 33 minutes or until the sides are set and the centre looks slightly damp. Let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack before cutting.

To make the coulis, combine raspberries, honey, lemon juice and 2 Tbsp. of water in a blender and puree until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer, pressing with a spoon or spatula to remove the seeds.

Serve slices of cake drizzled with coulis (and maybe whipped cream!)

*Note: My Mom doubled the recipe and made a layered cake with raspberry jam in the middle. Double yum!

Thank you to my Mommy for making the most delicious gluten-free birthday cake! <3